Tag: focus

1. Stick with the Word

Some saints want to show themselves to be intelligent by dabbling in the philosophies of the world, the theologies of the denominations, or the politics of the nations. But the world has more than enough of these. Our message has to distinguish itself clearly from all these. We preach an almighty God whose love encompasses all of history and who glory has revealed itself in terms we can grasp. From creation we move quickly to the Book of Life, whose final author knows us better than we know ourselves. The Bible is the best argument for God’s existence. His power lives in it and from it people can be convicted of the truth.

A non-Christian friend of mine participated in a professional pop-music video a few months back, and the gist of the song was how staying connected 24/7 turns people into zombies. The message is a good one, even if the details might not be appreciated by saints. (Hence, no link.)

Last week, a well known news figure wrote at length about the great sin of today — distraction. An atheist, he even fled to a monastery for a time and gave up his electronics, as he attempted to free himself from its control.

If he’s right that distraction is today’s great sin, then Dug, the cute dog in the “UP” movie, captures it perfectly. He can’t finish a sentence for seeing a squirrel.

There’s always a new buzz, tone, text, tweet, post, status, email, video, link, or grandbaby pic to take us away from a conversation or thought. (Only the grandbaby pics really deserve the distraction, see?) Continue reading “The sin of distraction”

Daylilies are a relatively new addition to my garden. At first, I avoided them because of the short life of the flowers. They are aptly named “daylilies,” or hemerocallis, meaning “beautiful for a day.”

The truth of the matter is that the plants bear multiple flowers, which open up throughout the span of a few weeks. There are many types of daylily, which can bloom as early as May and as late as August. Some varieties are “rebloomers,” and can have multiple flushes of blooms stretching all the way through fall. Continue reading “Every eye”

The editor shares seven separate thoughts this Monday, from Jesus’ narrow focus during his lifetime, to his speaking the truth, to the value of suffering, to Jesus entering in people’s houses. Continue reading Are You Energized?